1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a food analysis device.
2. Related Art
In the past, there has been known a food analysis device for detecting a component (nutrient) included in a food (see, e.g., JP-A-2008-217702 (Document 1)).
The camera (the food analysis device) of Document 1 is provided with a flash memory storing a food dictionary having food characteristics data including shape patterns and color patterns representing shape characteristics of each food, and food data (food reference data) including component contents included in the food, the total calories of the food, and so on. Further, when a food is imaged by an imaging section, the food analysis device recognizes the type of the food based on the taken image and the food characteristics data, and then calculates an actual amount of the food based on the distance information obtained by a distance sensor or the like and a field angle of the camera, the shape of a serving dish, and so on. Then, the food analysis device calculates the component contents and the total calories of the food based on the food reference data of the food.
Incidentally, the food analysis device described above identifies the food based on the food characteristics data recorded in the food dictionary. Therefore, there is a problem that it is not achievable to identify the food not recorded in the food characteristics data. Further, in order to identify a larger number of foods, there arises a need for previously registering an extremely large amount of data, and a storage area with a large capacity also becomes necessary.
Further, the food analysis device described above calculates rough values of the component contents and the calorie of the food using the reference values of the component contents and the calorie recorded in the food reference data. However, since the component contents and the calorie per unit amount recorded in the food reference data are different from the component contents and the calorie per unit amount of the actual food, there is a problem that it is not achievable to calculate accurate component contents and calorie.